Greatest form of flattery
by innocentjester
Summary: Near tries to get Mello to like him by trying the most logical form of flattery, Immatation. MelloXNearXMatt Warning, later story bits will contain lemony goodness. If you don't like BoyxBoyxBoy Don't read.
1. The Challange

I had this idea in the grocery store, while talking to a fellow cosplayer on the cellular phone. We pondered how Near would go about making Mello like him. We figured he would try the most logical tactic of imitation as the greatest form of flattery. Rated M because I do plan on bathing you all with lemony goodness later on, so look for ward to the kissing and hugging and other violence. For now lets just watch Near get picked on…. MelloXMattXNear

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Chapter 1: The Challenge

"You have got to be fucking kidding me"

Girls near the door to the class room braced for impact as typhoon Mello came in for a landing. It wasn't like they couldn't hear him coming from all the way at the other end of the hall, like a freight train colliding with a solid steel wall, but one felt disconcerted when the blonde terror came at them in a hot furry that only he seemed to radiate.

It was bad enough grades had been posted a day later then usual causing every one around this particular class room extra undeserved hours of stress, but once again the results spoke for them selves. In the little lines that made up the school's rank Mello caught his name at number two, and his worst nightmare, the person he hated most in the world, who seemed to beat him at absolutely everything, the number one student, was Near.

Staring in disbelief, like he had expected the ranks to some how change in the 27 times he ran over it, Mello could feel his usual anxiety and indigestion well up again.

"NEAR!!!!" The leather clad blond screamed, causing passers but to groan and cover their ears.

"NEAR!!! Where the fuck are you?!"

In reality the screaming wasn't necessary, as the fair haired boy was right on the inside of the door. Near hadn't needed to look at the grades because he had already calculated the obvious outcome. Stepping out of his hiding place, the albino gave a wordless stare to Mello, which only infuriated the blond more.

"YOU cheated didn't you" Mello scooped up Near by the scruff of his shirt and hosted him a few inches in the air, then pushing him harshly into the wall. Near's finger rose up to twirl a piece of his hair, he seemed unperturbed by being jostled about.

"I don't know what you're talking about Mello" he answered flatly, "Would you mind terribly putting me down".

Out of all the annoying things that Near did, that was the worst, the absolute uncaring, unfeeling, unemotional façade that he always seemed to have. It was like nothing in the world seemed to matter, most of all being number one.

_He doesn't deserve to be number one. _Mello glared at the younger boy in disgust.

"You're cheating, I just know it and one of these days I'm going to figure out how!"

Mello's cheeks were pink to add emphasis how engulfed in rage he was now, shaking the smaller boy in his hand before finally dropping him to the floor.

Mello punched the wall with his fist barely missing Near's baby soft face and grinding a few of the impossibly white hairs into the wall. Near could only insinuate that it was meant as an example of future threats, and promises from the irate blond. Students scattered and hugged the walls as the menacing form stormed off down the hall and disappeared around a corner.

Near bit his lower lip, staring off at the direction that Mello had traveled in. His finger still working away on the fluff of hair he previously ensnared. The group of girls that had previously been in front of the door had taken refuge under a stair case a few feet a way. Their chatter was muffled but Near could still make out what they were saying.

"Mello really hates Near" One girl whispered to another. They stole frequent glances in the albino's direction, and when they were satisfied he wasn't paying attention to them they continued.

"He's so weird, look at him just standing there" A chubby girl sneered, "After Mello threatened him even, it's like he doesn't even care"

"I heard he doesn't have any friends" A pinched face girl joined in the amusement, "No wonder Mello hates him, and he's such a loner"

The girls erupted into laughter then, Near tried to comprehend how putting some one down like that could be so enjoyable, something he would never quiet understand. If this was what it meant to have friends he wasn't sure he wanted that kind of experience.

Sighing lightly, the white haired sprite turned to leave, becoming bored with this eavesdropping, it was then he heard the challenge.

"I bet he couldn't make friends even if he tried" One girl began, Near hadn't seen who it was, not that it mattered.

"I guess that's one thing Mello can be better at Near at, he had Matt after all… I bet Mello would love to hear about that" Another irruption of laughter ensued from the group of chortling girls.

Near's finger immediately stopped twirling his hair, it was like a switch kicked on in his computer brain and he began processing that last statement.

_Mello was better at making friends than I am…. Which translates to…? Mello is better at something then I am. _

Nears deep gray eyes widened a fraction of a millimeter. Rotating on his heals he made his way hastily over to the girls under the stares. Greeted by the shocked look of his presence mixed with the fear and realization that the young heir had overheard their conversation, the girls were silent and wide eyed.

Near twirled his hair in his finger, smiling in a mock innocent way he parted his lips to speak.

"Challenge accepted"

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Alright first chapter done, X3 second hopefully going to be up soon. Looks like Near can't let go of a challenge just like Mello, I wonder what its going to turn into. Please comment 


	2. The Hypothesis

So I forgot to add la disclaimer in the last chapter… shame on me but here it goes. I do not own Death note, nor do I own the characters on, in, or around the Death note. If I did I'd have a hell of a lot more money and would not be writing these silly stories in my free time. Oh and the "You know how I know you're gay?" Game idea was taken from the movie 40 year old virgin.

That being said…. Here is Chapter two of the logical form of flattery. Near is beginning to find a whole new reason to except the challenge as he starts to do research on Mello's "Friend making" abilities.

WARNING: MelloXMatt with Near watching in the closet lemony goodness. If you don't like, don't read. If you do like, by all means enjoy.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Chapter 2: The Hypothesis

It was for research, that's what Near had concluded and that's why he was now padding quietly across the joint room of Matt and Mello. Glancing around the large room, he wasn't quiet sure what he was looking for. He knew what ever the secret was to how Mello had friends and he didn't had to be somewhere in this room.

The room its self was a complete contrast to his own room, the right half of the domain was clearly Matt's, with no visibly clean floor space as every inch was covered in some sort of electrical devise. The albino wasn't quiet sure how Matt got into his bed every night with out having to walk over the piles of cording and bits.

"_Maybe that's why he wears boots" _He mused, he clutched a robot that he had brought with him for security purposes tight to his chest.

The mere thought of being in Mello's room, uninvited with the possibility of being discovered and probably punished was almost _too_ exciting to the young boy. He licked his lips and headed the opposite direction of the technological mess, to the surprisingly cleaner side of the domicile.

Mello's bed was like his, large, with a canopy that almost touched the ceiling. It was the same for all L successors he decided, every one on an equal playing field as far as rooms went.

Near padded over to the bed, running his fingers over the dark sheets and comforter, they felt like silk. They had to be more comfortable to sleep in then his stiff white cotton sheets.

The albino laid his prized toy at the side of the bed on the floor, and using what upper body strength that he possessed, he hoisted himself onto the bed, landing face first into Mello's silk' in pillows. It was indeed much more soft and comfortable then his own sheets. He made a mental note;

"_Obtain silk sheets."_

Near sat back up, feeling around under the pillows, he was sure that there might be some sort of clue underneath there to bring to light this power that Mello possessed and he seem to not.

"hmm" was his only response as he pulled his hands out from under the pillows, there was nothing. Near looked around him again, carefully selecting his next investigation, a desk, an amour, and a bathroom door.

Near slid off the bed, landing on the floor with little noise other then a soft 'swish', He had reached Mello's desk in a little under 5 shuffles, which was ridden with papers and half eaten candy bars, he honestly didn't know how Mello got any work done in this chaos. Picking up a chocolate bar he stared intently at it as if the answer was right there and he didn't see it. A noise from the hallway made him drop the bar and turn to quickly glance at the bedroom door.

Muffled talking was getting louder; it stopped for a moment at the door, and then started up again. Near pondered his actions for a second, searching in him memory for a word that could describe the situation he was in at that moment. Remembering back to a time when Matt had used a word to describe not studying for a final exam, And Near concluded that both events were similar in nature for he found him self unprepared. In the words of matt Near was,

"Royally screwed"

It was about the time of the handle of the door turning to the right when the albino's fight or flight mechanism kicked in, were upon the boy decided that in this particular situation he was no match physically for Mello, much less the combined force of Mello and Matt.

Near pondered his options in that millisecond of free time he had before his impending doom for being uninvited in the room of his assumed rival, he decided that the best course of action was to hide him self in the full length amour.

Mello entered the room full bore, regaling his redheaded companion of the events of the day. Matt who was fully engrossed in the DS game he was playing, occasionally interjected comments that came out as in coherent grunts. The blond how ever seemed to either not mind or not notice, as he pretty much like hearing the sound of his own voice talking. The aggravated blond hastily threw his leather jacket onto the bed and began the task of unzipping his boots.

From Nears vantage point in the amour he could make out Mello's side of the room, but not Matt's he also could not see any means of escape where he could go undetected. Leaning against the back of the closest, he pulled his knees up to his chin, and twisted a piece of hair in his finger; the only thing he could do was sit and wait.

"So then, he just _stared_ at me, STARED" fuming the god of the leather pulled off a metal tipped boot and let it fall nosily to the floor. "Like some sort of creepy robot"

Matt signed from his perch on his computer chair; he spun around nonchalantly using the computer desk as leverage. "And that's different from normal how?"

Mello tsked, showing his obvious disgust for the topic. "That kid has some serious problems, I mean how could just stare like that?!"

"Maybe he's gay" Matt's voice had a hint or sarcasm in it, but to anyone that might not know him, he sounded completely serious.

"You're gay" Mello retorted flopping down on his bed.

"Do you know how I know you're gay?" Matt bounded from his sea of wires and joined the blonde successor, sitting crossed legged on the end of the bed. "You stare at Roger's ass every time he walks by" The goggled boy whipped out his game boy and switched it on.

Mello sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, a maniacal grin spread over his face. "Do you know how I know your Gay?" He retorted, swinging his legs back and forth wildly. His heel connected with something and send it flying under neither his bed. Gingerly he looked over the edge, but deciding it was nothing he flopped back down. "You look at gay porn on your computer"

Matt chuckled, fingers whizzing away on the tiny buttons, "You know how I know you're gay? Because you jerk off to watching wrestling"

Mello's blue eyes narrowed, his grin never faltered, it was like watching a lion stalk his unsuspecting prey. "You know how I know you're gay? You like it when you get fucked in the ass"

Matt's fingers stopped moving and his eyes darted upwards, their eyes locked and they started at each other for what seemed like eternity, then he went back to his game. Mello burst out laughing, counting that as a victory for himself.

"Do you know how I know your Gay?" matt finally said, his voice sounding oddly serious, "When you're whacking off, I've heard you call out Near's name"

Near perked up at the sound of his name, rolling over onto his knees so he could get a better view of the bed scene, a thumb slowing making its way to his mouth, he sat back quickly on his haunches and watched.

"_Whacking off?" _Near was not familiar with that term, he could only imagine that it was a slang term for boxing. A tingling sensation shot up the white hair boy's legs, they were falling asleep, he made no attempt to move, this scene was far to interesting to adjust just yet.

Mello was a blur of black and yellow as he flew from his position on the bed, slamming into Matt and straddling his waist. The game flying from the red head's hand to the floor, he winced as it landed with a loud crack.

"You fucker" Matt moaned, rubbing his arm which had been unnaturally pinned under Mello.

"Shut up! I'm so kicking your ass for that" Mello hastily pinned Matt's arms behind his head and smashed their lips together.

Near jumped in his hiding space, Mello had "kicked his ass" as he so vulgarly put it a plethora of times, and never once did it involve kissing. His thoughts were interrupted by a desperate moan coming from the pile of boys on the bed out side.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

Ok sorry for copping out on this chapter, I wanted to get to the lemon but I got busy and such… the next chapter is the continuation of this one… only with actual lemon. I'll post the 3rd chapter this evening because I feel bad about not having this one done the other day.

Nears a voyeur… X3


	3. Key Witness

Greatest form of flattery ~ Chapter 3: Key Witness

Disclaimer: I do not own Deathnote, or the characters in Deathnote, or the sexual implications of Deathnote.

_Near jumped in his hiding space, Mello had "kicked his ass" as he so vulgarly put it a plethora of times, and never once did it involve kissing. His thoughts were interrupted by a desperate moan coming from the pile of boys on the bed out side. _

Mello slid his agile fingers underneath Matt's signature stripped shirt, He stopped at the nipple, harshly pinching and rubbing till it was erect, smirking as the goggled boy let out a low moan. Pushing the garment up, the blonde started at the waist band of the jeans, trailing his tongue upwards, snaking around the muscular curves of Matt's chest. Every once in a while a red bite mark appeared in the areas that Mello paid extra special attention to. All the while the desperate moans of the goggled one grew increasingly louder and harder for the blonde one to ignore.

It was worse for the albino sprite hiding out in the large armoire in the corner of the room. Unable to escape or even stop himself from watching as the lustful scenes unfolded before him. Near tried to back up the farthest he could go, but the dresser was shallow, and this only exacerbated the pale boy's stressed nerves, it was getting warm and he could feel drops of sweat running down the back of his neck.

Focusing on the nipple, Mello licked and bit until it had turned a shade of pink that matched the blush crossing over Matt's cheeks.

"I fucking hate you"

The red head managed to stutter before his eyes seemed to roll into the back of his head. The blonde's response was to smash their lips together, licking and biting the red head's mouth until he left an imprint of his teeth in the younger boy's flesh. Their tongues battled for dominance, slipping in and out of each others mouths respectively, eventually ending with Mello's victory.

All at once gone was Mello's shirt, Matt's hands working so fast it was as if he was living proof that video games make kids more dexterous. Near was stunned staring through the crack at the sight of Mello's bare chest, puberty had hit the blonde early and he had the body of a boy who was not quite a man but clearly no longer a child. Feeling his face grow suddenly hot, Near's hands went to cover his cheeks, even if there was no one to see him he felt utterly embarrassed.

Mello soon fallowed suit, stripping the redhead of his striped garment and inadvertently taking his goggles with it, then everything went on the floor, so much for Mello's side of the room being the clean one. Not even bothering to unbutton Matt's jeans, Mello's hand dove deep inside wrapping his slim fingers around Matt's hardening manhood. Bucking his hips in the air, the younger boy's breath hitched, Mello was obviously pleased by this sound, smirking evilly and unbuttoning his much tighter pants with his free hand.

"Fuck!" Matt hissed, closing his eyes as beads of sweat formed on his forehead, his bangs became matted to his face, making him all the more attractive in the blonde's eyes, this was his favorite "Matt" face after all.

"Hold your horses" Mello mused, abandoning the fastens of his pants to pull down Matt's with some help from the red head.

"That's not-" Mat groaned again, not able to finish his sentence as Mello squeezed his throbbing cock, digging his nails into the bed sheets, he could already feel that rushing feeling that he always seemed to get right before he came.

Near gasped a little louder then he wanted to as Matt's member and Mello's ever pumping hand were exposed to the world. He had seen himself naked plenty of times, but never had it looked like that. Matt was hard and red from Mello's fisting, the tip glistening with precum. Mello promptly licked it off; he enjoyed the taste of Matt, and engulfed the head in his eager mouth.

Covering his mouth and biting down on his fingers was the only thing the albino could think of to do to stop himself from crying out. Near's heart was racing in his chest and he felt an odd tingling sensation from his nether region, this was affecting him and he was no longer sure that it was a bad thing.

Mello saw Matt's chest muscles tighten as he worked his tongue around matt's head, lapping up the precum and nipping at the base of the head. Matt squirmed and trusted into Mello's eager mouth. Taking Matt's entire length into his mouth, the blonde made sure that he stayed away from his gag reflex, he didn't want a repeat of the last time he tried to deep throat the redhead. Mello sucked and pumped Matt's cock as his free hand began to stroke the bulge forming in his own pants. Matt bucked again, trusting himself deeper into Mello's mouth and bumping into the back.

"Shit that feels good" He purred, his chest muscles tightened again, the signal to Mello that he was close.

"Don't you dare fucking cum yet, I will stab you"

"Hurry the fuck up then dip shit"

Mello needed no more prompting then that, he let go of Matt's Member, giving Near the full and unobstructed view that sent shivers down his spine, he had never expected Matt to be circumcised, not that he could really confirm it at that moment. He watched as Mello stripped himself of his pants, revealing a magnificent erection that stood tall and proud and seemed to have a personality much like the blonde's. Mello producing what looked like a small bottle of hand sanitizer from somewhere in his bed sheets, popping the top off he squeezed a large amount on his fingers, then tossed the bottle away.

Near felt dizzy, hot, and suddenly very over dressed as he braced himself against the bottom of the armoire and took deep and slow breaths, sweat trickled down his baby face, dripping onto his white pajamas. He begged his brain to make himself look away, but his body betrayed him and at once he returned to the front of the closet.

Mello spread the lubricant over his fully hardened member; it was hasty, knowing Matt wouldn't last much longer in his current condition and honestly neither could he, Matt had always been able to bring out the best in him, and the worst.

Near was suddenly very concerned for Matt, he didn't know much about sex, but he did know something about the male anatomy, and Near _knew_ that the male's sexual organ was designed for a female, Matt, as Near could plainly see was _anything_ but female, there for how could he possibly- Nears thought process came to an abrupt halt, much like a car does when it comes in contact with a wall after traveling at a very high speed.

Mello positioned himself between Matt's spread knees, lifting one of the redhead's legs to his shoulder. It had became quiet clear to the closet voyeur just what Mello was about to do. It didn't seem physically possible, but the idea of it happening was just too interesting to ignore.

Mello didn't even bother preparing his best friend, there was no time for that now, and it wasn't like this was the first time they had done this. The blond grabbed a steady hold on the red head's boney hips, positioning the head of his massive erection at Matt's entrance he looked up and nodded to the exasperated teen in front of him. "Ready?"

"I've been ready" Was Matt's snarky retort, it was obvious to Mello that Matt was way to sarcastic and coherent for his taste. Mello thrust into matt with such a force that the red head thought he might split in two. He cried out in a mixture of pain and intense pleasure, as Mello began to slide slowly out of him again, and then forcefully pushed his entire length into the younger body, each time meeting resistance that squeezed him from the inside.

"Holy fuck Matt… did you get tighter?" Mello gasped as he pumped into his best friend, digging his nails into Matt's hips, after as many times as they have fucked he would have figured Matt would have become looser. Mello's body was overcome with pleasure and heat, he tingled from head to toe and even some one like L, or even Near walking in at that moment and seeing them could not have been enough to stop him.

"It's all the Kegel exercises I do, shut the fuck up" The red head managed between exasperated moans, He bit his lip as his back arched again from pleasure, stifling a cry that caused his eyes to water. Mello had finally found what he was looking for, and he made a b-line for it, making sure that he hit Matt's prostate each and every time he re-entered. Matt shuddered as Mello hit his spot, over and over, pushing him ever closer to his release.

Matt's open mouth was hungrily engulfed by Mello's, the older boy slipping his tongue in, once again wrestling for domination, it was the only way he could get the red head to shut up, and besides the redness of the area's he had bit earlier had started to diminish, he needed to fix that. The new positioning trapped Matt's member between them providing his neglected cock some relief, being stroked, rubbed and squeezed along with the steady movement of their hips.

Before he realized what he was doing, or could even muster the courage to stop himself, one of Nears hand slid down his pants, grabbing his own hardening member in his hand. He began to stroke himself to the rhythm of Mello's hips, gradually hasting his speed as he built towards his own climax. Starting at the base he ran his hand up his length feeling ever sensation as he stopped to play with his own slit, and then starting over again. The feeling was something that the young genius had never experienced before, it sent wave upon wave of electricity up his back and spine. He could imagine himself there, crying out so very wanton and Mello leaned over him shoving his member into him over and over to make him come.

It was so close now, both of the boys could feel it as their bodies moved together, they quickened their pace, becoming engulfed and deranged in their own pleasure and intimacy.

Mello shuttered and Matt cried out as they both came together, masking perfectly the sound of Near in the closet, reaching his first ever climax. Falling back against the amours hard wooden back, Near stared down in horror and fascination at the white smear in his hand, slowly drying into flecks, proof that even he was capable of losing complete control over himself, unsure of what to do next he wiped the warm liquid off on his white pants.

Mello's load shot out of him like a rocket and filled Matt up, that's what they got for abstaining for more then a week. He collapsed after he withdrew from the panting boy beneath him, no matter how many times they did it, it always felt like a new experience, that's just the way it was with them. Matt's release was just as ferverant, proving that no matter how much of a pain in the ass (no pun intended) Mello was he could always get the job done when it counted. Mello rolled off of his best friend who was panting loudly.

Near realized what he had done in horror, what had he done? What were these strange feelings? The dawning that he could have potentially been found in a very compromising position by his rival and his lover scared him and oddly excited him. Looking out the crack in the closet he focused on the two naked boys laying together in silence on the bed. Everything else pulled aside he was still in the closet and still in very real danger, even if his embarrassing escapades were seemingly over.

"So you know what's weird?" Mello asked finally, getting over the after orgasm shock, and propping himself up on his arm to look at his friend.

"What?" Matt's voice sounded tired but amused as he ran his fingers through his sweat soaked hair.

"I had the strangest feeling we were bring watched" the blonde's eye brows furled, he played idly with a bit of bed sheet.

"You're freaking paranoid" Matt snorted folding his hands behind his head, neither seemed to notice that they were still in the nude, and the possibility that some one would come in was not quiet next to nothing in such a heavily populated school.

"Its not paranoia if someone is really out to get you" he smirked, finding his once again abandoned and slightly melted reminisce of a chocolate bar.

Near watched the boys chat for a while and slowly getting dressed, they seemed to switch topics often, from books, to homework, to oddly enough girls. Near was surprised that they even had conversations like this after what he just witnessed. Neither one of them seemed surprised or hurt when the other one talked about a "hot chick" in such and such a class, and what it would be like to do her. They even spoke of "doing her" at the same time.

Near now had a new goal to add to his challenge, he would figure out Mello's secret to making friends and surpass him, but that wasn't all, if today's actions were any indication of what it was like to be friends with Mello, Near was going to try his damnedest to be his best friend ever.

* * *

Ok so when I started this chapter, I didn't intend on their sex to be so sarcastic in tone, but as I reread it I realized that in this story line it made sense, and so I kept it that way. I could totally imagine them being that snarky during casual sex. It was actually hard for me to write Near masturbating, but I felt it had to be done.

Kegel exercises strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, which support the uterus, bladder and bowel. It's mostly done by pregnant women to prepare for child birth, it strengthen the butt and abdomen muscles.


	4. Reasonable Doubt

Sorry for the loooooooooooooong hiatus, things and stuff and such. Enjoy the new chapter, thanks for the comments. I love you all, yes even you… you there with the shirt… yeah you….

Disclaimer: I do not own Deathnote, or the characters in Deathnote, or the sexual implications of Deathnote. If thou dost not like boy on boy action, stop reading. Then again if thou dost not like boy on boy action and you have read this far you are a lair lair pants on fire! : p

* * *

Greatest form of flattery… chapter 4 ~Reasonable Doubt ~

* * *

It was pitch black when Near roused to consciousness, his butt was numb, and his back was sore for propping himself up against the hard back of the wardrobe. Looking around he felt slightly disoriented, he should have been in his own room, in his own bed safe an sound. It was a bitter realization that he was still trapped in the armoire, that he was still in Mello and Matt's room, and that he was still very much in trouble. Sliding the few inches forward to see out of the crack, he realized that it must have been night time. Strange masses in shades of dark and darker indicated Mello's bed; he could only assume the blonde was asleep. No light seemed to be emitting from anywhere else in the room, so near took an educated guess that Matt was asleep as well.

Near carefully pushed the door open, the creek from the old wooden door seemed to be deafening compared to the over whelming silence of the rest of the room. Cringing slightly he stopped to listen; there was no noise and no movement as far as he could tell, though he suddenly wished that one of the two older boys had some sort of lung ailment, that way he could at least be sure they were there. The albino pushed lightly on the door again, careful to use his shirt that way he wouldn't leave any finger prints, listening all the while. His heart pounding in his chest didn't seem to help his nerves any, and he had to take a couple low breaths to keep himself from passing out.

When he had gotten the space in the door to a satisfactory "Near" size, the albino stepped gingerly onto the hard wood floor. Even as light as he was, the old floor groaned under his weight, sending ripples of fear up his spine. The fear was only out weighted by the slight ashamed feeling that was now worming its way into his brain, he was the number one student in the school and the top candidate for successor to L, and he was sneaking around other people's rooms in the middle of the night like some sort of common criminal. Though he was one now right? technically, _breaking and entering_, followed by hiding out in _someone else's_ dresser with the purpose of _spying_ on them, followed again by a rip roaring good time of self actualization and a bit of voyeurism. His rap sheet was steadily growing as of late.

Near glanced in the direction of the bed, he could barley make out a shadow outline of two masses; he thought he heard the sound of shuffling, or rolling over, he wasn't sure. Turning back he tried to approximate the distance from where he was standing to where he remembered the door to be, 9 feet or so, he could make it if he ran, he could be out of here in a matter of seconds and no one would be any the wiser. Taking off towards the door, he knew he was almost there-

Slam!

Near ran full force into the door, knocking him backwards and landing on his ass. He cried out, rubbing his aching forehead and lower back, he was going to have to pay the doctor a visit after this that was _if_ he managed to make it out of there alive.

"What the fuck?!" an annoyed voice broke through the darkness; it was drowsy and not quiet lucid.

Near was a blur of white and adrenaline, opening the door and dashing through, he slammed the door behind him and took off down the hall towards his own room. He didn't stop, not even when his little lungs began to burn and ache, his head hurt from where he had hit it, and his feet were bruised from running barefoot.

Hallway

Door

Open

Shut

*click*

Near collapsed to the ground his chest heaving uncontrollability, his throat and lungs burned from over use and his feet throbbed. He didn't care though; he was back in the safety of his room, safe sound, and tried.

Mello woke up with a start, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from his eyes; he had had the craziest dream. A giant white monster, with huge glowing eyes, sharp teeth, and horns had come out of the closet and tried to eat Matt, he yelled and screamed, and frightened the monster away. Then he and Matt had victory sex.

Well, he thought with a sigh, maybe it wasn't such a bad dream after all.

Scratching his head he looked down at the sleeping form of Matt, who had managed to roll himself up like a burrito and steal the majority of the blonde's blankets, his goggles were flung on the head board like a trophy.

"Hey Matt" he gently pushed his friend's side, the blankets how ever acted like a force field and it had little effect. Narrowing his eyes he pushed Matt's side again, this time harder so the redhead could feel it.

An arm came out of the blanket cave and batted in Mello's direction, Matt was in no way a morning person.

"Hey Matt…" Mello stared again, his voice was oddly sensual and soft which made Matt nervous, he poked his head out of the covers and glared at him.

"What the hell do you want?"

Mello traced a finger down Matt's cheek, smiling in an eerie way that made Matt come farther out of his cave.

"Why the hell are you looking at me like that?" The red head slid the blankets off of himself, knowing that if he needed to he wanted to make sure he could get away fast.

Mello just smiled, tormenting Matt was one of his favorite pastimes, trumped only by tormenting Near.

"Screw you" Matt growled after a few minutes of torturous silence from the blonde, scoring another point for Mello on the invisible tally.

Mello laughed and slid off the bed, making his way to the armoire and throwing it open, taking no notice that the clothes had all been pushed to one side.

Matt opened his mouth, like he was going to say something sarcastic to annoy the blonde, when a something shiny caught his eye. It stood out like a sore thumb on Mello's black sheets, which is probably the only reason Matt noticed it at all.

Picking up between his thumb and fore finger, Matt examined the hair he found with child like curiosity, it was pure white, and slightly curly, all in all it was a rather stunning piece of hair. Matt looked sideways at Mello, and then back at the white hair, a sly smile crept over the gamers' face.

"Hey Mells … I think your going grey"

The armoire door slammed shut so hard, that the windows rattled on their frames, and Mello seemed to teleport from there to the bed where Matt held the offensive hair in his hand. The blonde glared harshly at his friend and then at the piece of hair which was now curling in on itself as if it were also afraid of the wrath of the blonde.

"I'm not going grey you ass" he hissed, running his fingers through his long locks, Matt could tell the blonde was pondering the gamers' possible reactions if he were to suddenly bolt to the mirror and check. Deciding that the humiliation was not worth quenching his growing curiosity about his roots, he put his hands on his hips.

"It's obviously not mine"

"Well it's not MINE" Matt yelled slightly annoyed now, if it wasn't Mello's and it wasn't his, it had to be _someone's._ Matt stared at the hair for a few moments, ignoring Mello's slightly worried glances between the gamer and the mysterious hair, he furrowed his eye brows, fighting with the realization that had just come to him.

There could only be one possible answer.

"It's Near's"

Matt's voice was oddly cold, and his glare was far from playful as his eyes moved from the hair to Mello, making the blonde feel like a husband who came home late with lipstick on his collar.

"Mello, why is Near's hair in your bed?"

Matt eyes were like daggers stabbing Mello in the side of the head as the blonde tried to process what he had just said. Obviously he was joking right? Near had never even set foot in their room, much less been in his bed. The proof however was undeniable; it was a pure white curly hair that could have only come from one source. Feeling uncomfortable, Mello shifted his weight from side to side, it was obvious he was in a predicament though he had no clue how the hair might have gotten there. The only thing he could think of to do was destroy the evidence.

"How the hell should I know" the blonde muttered, snatching the hair from Matt's hands before he had the chance to react. It didn't give the gamer in comfort that Mello was behaving that way, but he knew that the older boy would never divulge any information, no matter how important it was.

Matt bit his bottom lip, sliding Mello's blankets off of him he stole to his side of the room. Mello's eyes followed him curiously as the gamer plopped down in his computer chair, taking out his head phones and slipping them over his head.

"Matt-" Mello started, but then stopped, it was obvious that the red head had already gone into his famous "not talking to you" mode, in which he would spend the next few hours, or maybe even days ignoring him. The blonde's eyes narrowed slightly, starring at the back of Matt's head, he didn't blame him, and it did seem rather sketchy, though he honestly had no answer for it.

"It probably just came off while I was kicking his ass you know…." He muttered gathering up the sheets which had slipped off of the bed. It was no use, the gamer had completely tuned him out, lost in some MMO he was focused on.

Near felt like hell had frozen over, and then warmed up…. then just to fuck with him, just when he thought it was warm enough to come out of himself, it went and froze everything again. Not even the weekly email he received from his favorite pen pal had managed to cheer him up before class, just looking at his computer screen made his eyes hurt. Sitting at his desk, text book open in front of him, it was difficult to keep his head up and focused on the teacher's lesson. Normally the albino could sit through the day's classes and not even blink, which would freak the girls out. After last night however, all Near wanted to do was crawl back into bed, and sleep for a few days.

Mello watched the back of Near's head from his seat a few rows behind him. The blonde's eyes narrowed as he looked the smaller boy over, contemplating how he could have gotten one of those _things_ on his bed. A normal person would have figured out a long time ago that it was probably a stray hair that had gotten transferred by the shear fact they were in such close proximity to each other on a daily bases. Mello on the other hand was not normal, there for a slew of improbabilities raced through his head like a gerbil on speed.

_Maybe, _Mello thought, resting his chin on his hand and glaring at the back of the younger boy's white head, _He put it there, on purpose, because he knew Matt would find it and stop talking to me. It was all a clever plan he had from the beginning to make sure that I never reach the number one spot… ass hole. _

As much as he wanted it to be true, even he knew that it was a long shot. There was no way that Near could know that Matt slept in the same bed with him, there for the chances of him finding it there would be to improbable to calculate. Yet as he sat their fuming, he could think of no other explanation then Near must have some how gotten into his room with out him knowing and left the offensive hair for him to find. Leaning back the blonde kicked the desk in front of him leaving a perfect black boot print. The girl who happened to be sitting the seat whipped around fuming, but seeing he had his "talk to me and die" look she swallowed her pride and turned back around. Mello smirked, amused that he could so blatantly effect peoples lives with out consequence.

Near sighed, he would have to pay the nurse a visit after class and request a very large does of pain killer because no amount of wishing could take this headache away from him. His head slipped from his hand and landed with an all too dainty thud on his desk. He didn't bother to move it, even when it became evident he was being watched. Surprisingly enough it was Matt who brought up Near's strange behavior, preempting it with a gentle smack in the back of the head with his pencil. Near sighed lightly, forcing one of his trade mark blank faces before looking up at the strangely goggless redhead. Normally Near would have inquired into the boys sudden garb change, but his mind floated back to the night before and a light pink tinge appeared on his cheeks.

Matt raised a curved eyebrow, not sure how to take the other's sudden show of something that might construed as being human.

Near quickly looked away, trying to focus on the board in front of him rather then the boy boring his green eyes into him.

Matt had no intention of looking away, his eyes floating to Near's mess of white hair and pondering the more logical ways that one could have found its way to his roommates bed. Dwelling on it was pointless however, the truth was that Near was behaving strangely, and he wanted to find out why.

Matt looked over at his friend, the blonde was rocking back in his chair, booted feet on the chair in front of him. The girl that had been sitting there had gotten fed up and moved, it was easier then trying to argue with him. He was surprised that Mello hadn't been the first to notice and take advantage of Near's "condition", then again it might have been better that way. Matt didn't usually mind when Mello picked on Near because the albino didn't seem to be effected by it. The one thing Matt couldn't tolerate was someone picking on someone that was could not fight back in some way or another. In this case it looked like Near wouldn't be able to defend himself, even in the little way that he did.

The white haired boy looked down at his desk again, his head spinning with the mixture of lack of sleep and the fact that he had been witness to an event he was not sure he was prepared for. He must have been slipping some in his demeanor because the gamer next to him reached out with his pencil again and poked him in the temple. Had he not already been in pain, he might have complained.

Matt seemed satisfied with the lack of response and turned back in his seat. Looking occasionally out of the corner of his eye at the albino who had once again slumped down in his seat, Matt leaned over so that he could speak with out anyone over hearing.

"Cramps?" He asked with what had to be the straightest face Near had ever seen the boy ware.

"That's absurd" Near responded in his usual cold and lifeless manner, the sarcasm was not completely lost on him however. Matt looked deep in thought a moment, as if he was having trouble thinking of a response.

"Are you pregnant?" he asked, though this time he could not help but let a little chuckle at his own cleverness out. Near sighed, not in the mood to play Matt's version of 20 questions he wished he would just get to the point of his bantering. Matt's grin widened at the lack of response. It might have been his imagination, but Near looked a little exasperated, like his comments might have been bothering him.

A momentary silence lead Near into a false sense of security that Matt might have had enough of the conversation, but seeing the redhead lean back in his direction made his head suddenly hurt more.

"Who's the father?" He asked resting his chin in his hand. Near's eyes slowly slid over to the red head, a flash of annoyance took the gamer off guard.

Then with a straight face, cold and unfeeling Near stood up, intending on seeking out the solace of his dark room for the duration of his migraine. Matt's eyes followed him, thinking he might have actually done the impossible, gotten a rise out of the ice bitch. Near paused looking down at the striped clad boy, his eyes once again blank. He leaned in like Matt had done, whispering in his ear before leaving the read head slack jawed.

"Mello" was all he said.

Sorry about my long absence, I had a lot going on over the course of the past year. I fully intend on finishing this story don't worry lol. On to the next chapter!


End file.
